Retelling Deadman Wonderland
by TheBranchesOfSin
Summary: Ganta Igarashi was a high school student framed for killing his classmates. Sentenced to death, he must do what he can to survive in Deadman Wonderland. The mysteries of this hell hole will start to unravel as he tries to make his way out. Can he handle the dark secrets of his past, his powers, and even his lover and lost childhood friend, Shiro?
1. The Red Man

I just want to begin by thanking you for showing some interest in reading this story. I got the idea to retell the story after finishing chapter 51 of the manga. I had some questions for the story, plot, and characters.

How did some of the Deadman like Senji and Nagi end up in DW? What was that thing that killed the doctor at the end of the Forgery arc? How did Ganta suddenly get the courage to get on the Walfisch? What ever happened to his mother during the earthquake?

These are some of the questions I want to answer in this retelling of the storyline. I also want to make the storyline a little more rounded. When I say rounded, I mean I want to add a little more action and drama. Be ready because there will be some changes to the plot and story. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy!

_Disclaimer: Deadman Wonderland is property of Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondou. I have written this story for only entertainment purpose and nothing else._

* * *

_ **The Red Man **_

_On the top of a steep hill was a boy watching the orange evening sun setting slowly across the sky of Tokyo. He was sitting there patiently waiting for his friend to show up. To pass time, he would point in the sky at the various shapes and animals, play with his Aceman doll, and draw woodpecker symbols on his hands. But none of these activities seemed interesting. He was more focused on the doors of the nearby large, pale hospital. _

"_I wonder if Shiro is done today?" _

_In that moment the door crack open and he stood up to get a better look. He couldn't make out what is was entirely. He squinted his eyes to see that it was something snow-white and blowing in the wind. "Shiro?" He could almost feel his smile reach the end of his face. "She must be trying to play with me!" His palms were sweaty and his eyes were lit up like the night sky. He started making his way towards the building,"Now we can finally play tag, hide and go seek, leap frog ..."He started to slow up once he saw that it was just a lab jacket. The scientist was talking with someone until he decided to return back inside. The boy was alone once again, but now he was in front of the Medical Center. _

_There were only a few people that were here this late in the day. Most of them were scientist working for the director. The blinds were all shut and most of the doors were locked to keep people from coming in. The Medical Center didn't run like this at first. It all started when the director decided to operate on what he called "guinea pigs" for his research. The boy's mother was also involved with his research, and always required the aid of his playmate. Unbeknownst to the boy was that one of the "guinea pigs" the director mentioned was his best friend. _

_He sighed and made his way back up the hill."I wanted to play today, but mom needed to run some more test." He hadn't seen her since this afternoon, and now most of the day was gone. "I guess she'll come out eventually." Just before he sat back on the towel, he had an idea."I know!" Ganta tied the blanket around his neck, "Instead of waiting I'll go cheer her up in my Aceman outfit." He raced back down the hill, and stood in front of the opaque doors of the Medical Center. _

_He opened the doors to see the help desk was empty. The long, dark halls were foreboding as if something was telling him to go back. Ganta made his way down the hall gripping the toy in his hands. As he was getting close to emergency room,he could hear the screams and cries of people echoing down the halls. He could feel chills down his spine as he put his hand on the handle. He took a deep breath, and managed to sum up the courage to go inside the room._

**_One mischievous little woodpecker_  
_Another day, pecking your holes_  
_Ruining the woods, tree wrecker_**

_He dropped the toy upon entering. "Shiro?"Ganta looked at the gruesome picture placed in front of him. All around was the blood of scientists painted along the walls and floor. Their bodies of were ripped into pieces. The sheep in the corner was shivering itself to death. And standing in the middle of this nightmare was a shadowy figure about his height crying. The figure began approaching as he stepped back. "Get back!" The figure stomped on the toy and continued moving closer to the frightened boy. He felt his back touch the wall as the figure stretched its hand out to him. "Get away from me!"He slapped away the hand, and ran away leaving the figure alone. He was running through the hallways crying about what he had saw. "It can't be! It just can't be!"He shoved the doors open, and everything became engulfed in a white light. _

_** "Ganta!"**_

"Ah!"Ganta popped up from his bed in a sweat. While trying to catch his breath, he could feel his body trembling. He couldn't explain the various emotions his body was exhibiting. It was anxiety, sadness, guilt, and anger all wrapped into one. _Was that real, or was it a dream? _ He started grabbing his face, chest, and even hair to see if he was still there. _It was just a dream. _A sigh of relief escaped his lips.

He stepped into the bathroom and took several handfuls of water to splash on his face. After wiping the water away,he took a look at himself in the mirror. His hair was messy, his eyes were red, and his face looked exhausted. _That nightmare really did a number on me._ His hands were shaking as he held onto the edge sink_. _He took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly to ease his nerves.

He stepped back into his room, and noticed the curtains flapping in the wind. _I don't remember leaving the window open._ After shutting the window, he sat back on his bed and stretched his arms. _I'd better get some sleep for that field trip today. _Ganta laid down on the mattress and closed his eyes.

_Huh? _Something felt warm and soft in his hand. _What's this? _He took a firm grip of whatever he was holding, and heard a soft moan come from under the blanket. _I can't seem to move my arm._ He opened his eyes to see his arm being pulled under the blanket. "Nice try, Yamakatsu but you're …."

He stopped once he saw an albino girl sleeping with his arm between her breasts. _It's a girl! _He thought about what he did, and how the moan of the girl sounded pleasant to his ears. _Get that thought out of your head. _The blush across his cheeks was going to make his head explode. Every time he would try to pull his arm out she would pull him closer.

Since he couldn't escape, he decided to take a look at this snow-white sleeping in his bed. Her pale skin was wrapped in a peach bodysuit decorated with spirals and stripes. Her hands were covered with large brown oven mitts. _What an unusual girl. _Ganta inched closer to the stranger in his bed. _I've never seen her before._

"Boo!"

"Ah!"Surprised by this, Ganta fell off the the bed.

Shiro peeked over the edge to see him laying head first on the floor. "Oops."

"Who are you?" He started rubbing the back of his head once he got up. "And what are you doing in my room?"

"Shiro, wanted to play with Ganta!"

"Huh? You know my name?"

"Of course I know Ganta's name." Shiro answered as she started jumping on his bed. "He's my friend."

_I'm her friend? _He stood in the middle of the room confused by the girl's words. _I don't even know who she is._

"Come on Ganta play." Shiro grabbed Ganta's hand and pulled him up on the bed. He was just standing there as she was bouncing around. "Jump like Shiro, Ganta."

"Okay." He started jumping up and down on the mattress. _I barely even know this girl. _It was strange, he had just met her two minutes ago, and now their bouncing around as if they were childhood friends. _Did I know Shiro before? And I if I did, from where?_ He looked up to see her bouncing happily on his mattress

"This is fun, isn't it Ganta?"

"Yeah, Shiro it is."

In the midst of their playing, Ganta noticed she was bleeding from her left hand."Shiro, stop!" He walked over to the girl and removed her mitten. "Looks like you cut yourself."

"No pain Ganta, because I'm..."

"Come on," He interjected as he grabbed her hand and starting walking to the door. "There is a first aid kit downstairs."

The two exited the room, and made their way down the dark hall. Every step they made down the hall resulted in a loud screech echoing in the hall. There was a noise before they made it to the stairs. The two turned around to see that Yamakastu's light was on. As they approached his door, the sound became distinct. It was someone counting numbers followed by a thumping noise. They took a peek inside to see the tanned young man kicking a soccer ball in the air. He was in his usual sleepwalking state, and this time he was in the middle of a big game.

"Even in his sleep he thinks about soccer," Ganta whispered. "Alright, Shiro let's go." He turned around to see she disappeared."Where did she ..." When he looked back inside he saw she was in front of Yamakatsu, who was ready to make the game winning shot.

"So you're the new goalie everyone's been talking about." Yamakatsu was switching the ball between his feet trying to confuse Shiro. "Try and catch this!" He kicked the ball towards the window but luckily she caught it.

"Yay!" She exclaimed as she held the ball over her head in triumph.

"I'm sorry coach, but I lost the game." He hung his head in defeat.

"Don't worry, Yamakastu," Ganta said in a gruff voice as he guided Yamakatsu to the bed."We'll just try harder next time."

"Thanks coach."

As Ganta pulled up the door, he could hear Yamakatsu complaining about his "match". Once downstairs, he made his way to the storage closet next to the kitchen. When he opened it, dozens of soccer balls came crashing down on top of his head. Watching them roll around the floor made only one name come to mind. _Yamakatsu. _

Once he managed to get himself up, he began his search under the pile of boxes in the corner. _Now where did we put that first aid kit. _He started digging deep by pushing and sliding the cases to the side. He stopped for a moment when he saw a box with his name labeled on the top. _Huh? _He unfolded the sides to see the only thing inside of it was a toy._ Hey, this is t__he Viscoelastic Warrior: Aceman. _When he looked closer he saw that it was in pieces. _Man what happened to it?_Its face was divided by a crack in the middle , and the arms, legs, and neck were all torn away from the body. _I'll just leave it here._ He carefully placed it back in the box, and continued his search.

Meanwhile, Shiro had wondered off into the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and started scanning each shelf for sugary confections. _It's too cold for candy. _After closing the fridge, she noticed the last slice of cake on the shelf up above. Its white icing made her eyes light up like stars. _Cake!_She walked over to the table, then slid one of the chairs in front of the door. She stepped up on the back and reached out to the piece. _Shiro can.. almost.. reach it. _She turned to the side to see him still rummaging through boxes. By seeing him trying to help her, she became determined to get that cake. _Shiro, must get for Ganta!_ She arched her body further until she finally got hold of the pastry. _I got it. _Unfortunately,the chair gave away due to it being only on one leg.

"Hey Shiro, I found the …." He was interrupted by the girl falling on top of his back.

As she sat on his back, she slid her finger across the side of the cake, and tasted the sugary frosting. "Hmm!"

They made their way back into his room.

While he was wrapping the bandage around her hand, she was trying to offer him a bite. "No thanks Shiro I don't..."She shoved a piece of cake in before he could finish.

"Is it good, Ganta?" She asked watching him chew and swallow the last piece.

After chewing, he took a moment to savor the smooth, delicious flavor."Yeah, it was good."

"Ganta, what's that?" She asked as she pointed at the desk.

"You mean this?" He picked up the phone and showed it to her.

"No," She said as she shook her head back and forth. "That."She tapped her finger on the symbol.

"Oh, it's a woodpecker."

"Draw," She demanded as she removed her mitten, and held out her right hand. He drew one perfectly in the middle of her palm. When he was finished, she decided to draw one on his right hand. The symbol she drew wasn't as neat and clean as his. "Now Shiro and Ganta are best friends."She asked as she held her palm in front of Ganta to show her symbol.

_Best friends? _He glanced down at the rough doodle of the woodpecker. To him it was just a drawing, but to Shiro this symbol seemed important. Maybe he did know this girl. Maybe they were friends at an earlier point in clenched his hand, and looked back up to face the girl.

"Ganta!"

He turned his head to see Yamakatsu standing in the doorway. "Something wrong, Yamakatsu?" Ganta turned back to see Shiro had vanished. _Where did she go?_

Yamakatsu looked around the room and then out the open window,"I could have sworn I heard another voice." He looked back at Ganta, who forgot to wipe the icing off his cheek. "Hey! Isn't that my piece of cake?"

Once Yamakatsu left, Ganta flopped down on his pillow, and started reflecting about what happened tonight. He held his hand above his head, then gazed outside at the moon, _Shiro._

Meanwhile on the roof of the house, Shiro was staring at the woodpecker symbol on her hand. She closed her eyes, and held her palm over her heart, _Ganta._

_**The angry old forest god turned your poor beak into a poison knife**_**  
**_**Poor little wood pecker, your nesting holes are all tainted**_**  
**_**Your food with toxins rife**_

"Yamakatsu wake up!" Ganta exclaimed as he hoisted a bag around his shoulders.

"Just five more minutes coach." Yamakatsu dug his head deeper into the pillow.

_Just don't blame me when you get left behind._ Ganta walked outside and made his way to down the street. On his way to school, he decided to take a shortcut in an abandoned tunnel. He could hear someone humming from behind, so he started increasing his pace. He slowed down once the singing had stopped. _Wonder what that was all about? _A few minutes later the humming returned and now it was louder. _Shit, thought I outran that guy._ As he was running, he turned around to try and get a look at his pursuer. _It looks like …. _

He ran into the concrete wall before he could finish his thought. _I should've been paying attention to what was in front of me too. _Ganta got up from the sidewalk, and looked back into the dark passage. _That song sounded familiar. _He shook his head and didn't think about it any longer on his way to school. He stepped inside the classroom to see that there were only a few students in the room. _Made it __here earlier than I thought. _He tossed his bag over his chair and flipped open his phone.

"Boy or girl, young or old; here everyone's wildest dreams roam free at Deadman Wonderland!" He took a sip of coffee as he watched as the birds fluttered around the video.

"Morning Ganta."

"Mimi."

She took a seat and turned around in her chair. "Whatcha lookin at?"

"I'm just roaming through some videos on this prison field trip thing."

"I hear it suppose to be some tricked out amusement park."

"Yeah." He started rubbing the back of his neck, "I just wish we were going somewhere different."

"Are you alright?" She started moving her face closer to Ganta. "You look like you had a rough night."

"I just really didn't get enough sleep."

"What happened?"

"He was too busy chatting with some girl last night."

"Hey Yamakatsu." Mimi greeted as she waved.

Yamakatsu waved back and turned his attention to Ganta."Hey, thanks for waiting for me."

"Not my fault." Ganta turned off his phone."You were too busy trying to score the winning shot."

"So what do you think about the trip?" Mimi asked.

"I'm all for it," Yamakatsu answered. "Maybe we'll meet someone who can actually remember what happened at that earthquake ten years ago."

"Aw don't try and bring that crap up again, Yamakatsu!"

"Chill out you two," Mimi turned back to face her desk. "As long as we can get out of school before the exams, then it doesn't matter where we go."

As everyone began to take their seats, he could hear someone humming. _It's that song from earlier. _Ganta started looking around the room to find the source. _Did they follow me here? _He stood up in his chair, and turned to see who was in the window. It was a man dressed in heavy suit of armor drenched in blood, wrapped in a torn red cape with a sliver mask covering his face. _Who is that!_

He could see the man smiling directly at him. The Red Man shattered the windows with his blood. Ganta covered his face as the translucent shards entered the classroom.

_Ah!_

When he finally regained consciousness, Ganta found himself in a puddle of liquid. _What happened? And what is this stuff? _ He soon discovered that the strange liquid was blood. He quickly slid away from the puddle. He looked down at his hands, and back up to see the bodies of his classmates scattered across the floors and walls. _This is just like in that nightmare! _He turned to the side to see the head of his classmate clenched in the Red Man's hand. He couldn't believe who it was.

_Mimi._

The Red Man tossed her head in Ganta's lap. The lifeless eyeballs staring back made his heart beat at his chest like a drum. He knocked it back, and started sliding towards the back of the classroom. He bumped into someone. It was pieces of Yamakatsu's body arranged in a neatly pile. _First Mimi, and now Yamakastsu. What the hell is going on? _He wanted to believe that this was a dream, but the man standing in front of him was real. The Red Man began slowly approaching the frightened boy. Ganta felt his back hit the wall _ This can't be real! This just can't be real! Everyone is dead! _Now the Red Man stood before him with a sadistic smile on his face.

_Am I gonna die too._

Ganta watched as the Red Man fired a beam straight to his chest. It hit him dead center. He gripped his chest. The pain was unlike anything else he had felt. The intense beating of his heart almost made him vomit. The Red Man stood there as he slid from the wall to ground. The last thing he saw was the Red Man walking away.

_I am going to die._

_**Touch your friends, and they all will die falling at your feet  
Oh, sad little woodpecker  
Poisonous tears, shining brightly, as they stream down your cheeks**_

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Thanks for reading, and be sure to stay tuned for more chapters soon.


	2. It's a Dog Eat Dog World

I would like to thank everyone who has read and commented on this story. I did not think it would get people's attention so quickly but I guess I was wrong. Now your comments and patience will be rewarded with a brand new chapter. So sit back, relax, and enjoy!

_Disclaimer: Deadman Wonderland is property of Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondou. I have written this story for only entertainment purposes and nothing else. _

* * *

_**It's a Dog-Eat-Dog World**_

_After regaining consciousness, Ganta sat up against the hospital's stiff, plastic headboard."Everyone is dead, but me." He clenched his fist as he thought about the butchering of his classmates. Their bodies scattered across the classroom's walls and floor made him furious." It's all his fault! If it wasn't for that... that... Red Man!" Before he could slam his fist down, he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He gripped his chest as he slid down the headboard onto the side of the bed. He could feel a small lump poking out in the middle."What is this?"He unbuttoned his shirt to see a red gem sticking out. "This must be what that Red Man shot into my chest." He closed his shirt when he heard a knock at the door. A man in a suit and a police officer stepped into the room. _

"_You are Ganta Igarashi, correct?" The detective flashed his badge. _

"_Yeah, but what's ..." Ganta stopped when he saw the detective pull out a pair of handcuffs. _

"_The twenty-one students in the class room were brutally murdered, and the police announcements this afternoon declare that..." The detective handcuffed Ganta. "... they will arrest and press charges on the fourteen year-old old survivor." _

_The two men escorted him out of the room. _

"_Wait!" Ganta managed to escape their grip, and unbuttoned his shirt to reveal nothing. "Where did it go?"_

"_You must be Ganta." He looked up to see a weasel-faced man handing him a business card. "Pleased to meet you. I'm your lawyer, Tamaki Tsunenaga."_

_**I** didn't do anything. _

"_We have come to a decision based on the numerous pieces of unusual evidence recovered by the police." The judged looked down to see an anxious expression on Ganta's face."For the mass murder at the Fourth Perfectural Middle School of Nagano, we hereby sentence the defendant, Ganta Igarashi..._

_To Death!_

"_This can't be real." The guards escorted Ganta out of the court room. "Why am I going through this?"_

_I **didn't** do anything._

"_I am Chief Warden Makina and welcome to Deadman Wonderland." She started walked up and down the line of criminals. "Most of you probably know that this is no ordinary prison. We are a business and you all are the show. The attractions that you run help fund the reviving of Tokyo. Are there any questions so far?" _

"_Yeah, how big are those titties?" _

"_G." She received an expression of awe from the group. " If your clever you can live off that bag for three days. Each of you have three days until that collar around your neck fully injects a deadly poison into your body. If you want to live you must work for candy, which requires cast points. You all get one piece as …." _

_Ganta was hit by a cart full of boxes._

"_Aw dude, I didn't even see you there." Someone emerged from behind. It was a blond haired, blue eyed boy. _

"_Don't worry about it." _

"_You should return what you stole." Makina stood over the two boys._

"_What are you talking about?" _

"_I didn't really want to do this." She placed her hand on the sheathe of the sword and in a flash she sliced him across his chest. _

"_Ah!" Ganta watched as he fell down to the floor. He was losing blood at an incredible rate._

"_Chief Warden Makina, that was a little overboard!" Her assistant kneeled down to help him. "Quick, call a paramedic squad!" _

"_Let this be a warning to all of you who think you can break the rules!" She placed her heel on top of the young man's head. _

"_This is twisted." _

" _Twisted you say?" She started pushing down on his head to lean over to Ganta's face."You're going to have to wake up if you want to make it here." Ganta watched as she started smiling at the young man's pain. "Deadman Wonderland is reality, and reality is made to be unfair and unjust."_

_I didn't **do** anything. _

"_Hey brat, what makes your so special that you get to talk to a woman?" The leader of the group stepped forward with a L-shaped pipe in his hand. "Are gonna kill her too when you get the chance?" _

"_No!" She pushed the man aside and stood in front of Ganta with her arms stretched out."Ganta doesn't kill his friends!"_

"_You fucking bitch!" One of the other goons tried to punch at her. She stepped to the side, and kicked him in the face during her back flip. But she was suddenly caught off guard by the L-shaped pipe. Ganta watched as she fell to the ground unconscious. _

"_Fuck you." Ganta tried to punch the guy, but was stopped by the his headbutt. _

"_Your gonna have to pay for that." The group of guys took turns beating, kicking, and punching Ganta._

_They all stopped when the round shadow beneath their feet grew wider. They looked up to see the top of the tower falling. _

"_Let's get out of here!"_

_Ganta stood up after they left. He watched as the oncoming sphere grew bigger and bigger. " I lied when I said I wanted to die. I don't want to die. I want to go home. I want to kill that Red Man and get revenge for my friends. I want to get out of here. I want..." He held his hand towards the approaching object. _

_To Live!_

_I didn't do** anything. **_

"_Here." She sat the box of food on his tray. "I'll give you half. I'm broke too, you know." _

_He looked down at his new meal."Thank you so much! I'm Ganta Igarashi."_

"_Azami Midou." _

"_Wait! I've been collecting that CP for two years." _

"_Two years, huh?" The towering male slammed the ramen bowl down onto the elderly man's head. "Now you can spend two years collecting a new hair style!" _

_Ganta accidently knocked the ration off from leaning his tray too far over. Someone stomped on it before he could pick it up. He looked up to see who it was. _

"_The name's Kouzuji." The man was staring down at Ganta with a smile. "Nice to meet you kid." He punched him in the face."Listen here brat! I'm the law! If you see me kneel, and laugh! Open a path, and laugh! Know how to and laugh! Praise me, and laugh! You got that punk?" _

"_Yes." _

"_Good." Kouzuji pointed at the old man. "Now laugh at that old geezer." _

_As Ganta rubbed his swollen cheek, he formed a smile across his face."Hahaha." _

_Azami picked up the food off his plate."I guess you're just as low as him." She walked over to the old man leaving Ganta alone and ashamed. _

_ **I didn't do anything!**_

Ganta groaned at the beaming sunlight shining through the glass window. After rubbing his eyes, he rolled on his side to see slash marks embedded in the wall._"Day two, huh." _He rolled on his back and laid on the bed thinking about his approaching death._"I will be executed by tomorrow."_ He tapped the metal collar wrapped around his neck_. I__f I could just find that candy I could prolong my sentence._He got out of the bed and started rummaging through his bag._  
_

"Looking for something Ganta?"

He turned to see his cellmate standing in the doorway. "Maybe you can help me, Yo." He stood up with the empty bag in his hand." I can't seem to find that piece of candy that was in my bag. It was in there when they gave it to me but now it's gone."

"Maybe it got lost when I bumped into you."

"Hey don't worry about it." His stomach growled after he finished his sentence. Ganta quickly held his stomach in embarrassment.

"I'm so sorry."

Someone came busting in through the window.

"Let's play with all the toys Ganta!"

"Ahh! It's a ghost." Yo started shooing at the girl.

"No ghost." She started approaching the two boys. "Shiro is Ganta's friend!"

"You know her," Yo whispered to Ganta.

"Yeah, I do."

"Really? I've never seen her here before."

"Don't worry, I just met her three days ago."

"Shiro came to tell you all about all the toys!"

"Toys?" Ganta stood there confused.

"She must be talking about the Dog Race going on today." Yo took a seat on the bed. "It's one of the events that DW uses to raise money. It's an obstacle course where prisoners display there skill and I think the grand prize is 100,000 CP."

_100,000 CP. I could probably buy a lot of candy with that much! _Ganta was shocked to hear such a luxurious prize. "Are they still taking participants?"

"I think you can still sign up, but you just get an Anpan for participating."

"Anpan!"

"I would participate but …." Yo grabbed his shoulder, "...this injury really did a number on me."

"That was horrible, just slicing you without any warning."

"Well it only just the skin, but that's just what you would expect in Deadman Wonderland."

"Come on Ganta." She started dragging him out.

"I'll catch you later Yo!"

_So that's Ganta Igarashi. _Yo pulled out a stack of cards from his pocket. _I know Tamaki asked me to keep an eye on him but why? He just seems like an ordinary kid. _Yo looked down at the six Cast Cards in his hand. _But I guess as long as Tamaki keeps CP flowing. _He could hear chirping coming from outside. He looked out the window to see a hummingbird holding onto a primrose. Seeing the primrose made him recall someone who was quite fond of the flower. _Minatsuki._

* * *

"Anpan!"

_She must be running too. _Ganta held the book at his nose as he watched the girl stretch. She glanced at him for a moment and then quickly focused back in her locker. _I didn't do anything!_

"Well!Well! I didn't think that this many people would show up." Kouzuji stepped into the locker room. "Now I don't want any of you getting ahead of me! That is the rule for this race!" He started kicking and punching his way through the prisoners.

"Hey, you better cut that..." Before she could finish she was knocked to the floor.

"So little girl, you're gonna try and stand in my way huh?" He stomped down on her arm. "So that's one down." Kouzuji looked around the room to see everyone's face in disgust at his action."You all should be laughing since none of you got balls to try and stop me!" The room was immediately filled with laughter. He looked over at Ganta, who was too focused on Azami to laugh. "Hey kid. Got a problem or something?"

Ganta looked up at the towering figure and cracked a smile. "Hahaha."

"Good." Kouzuji pointed at Azami. "Now go step on it."

"What?"

"Did you forget." Kouzuji pointed at himself. "I'm the who makes the rules in here."

_I'm in this prison for a crime I didn't commit. _Ganta made his way over to Azami. _Being poisoned everyday until my collar decides my time is up. Beaten up for no reason. Almost getting killed by a falling sign. Punched by some asshole who thinks he's the law. _She started crying as he stood over her.

_You're just as low as him. _

"Do you really think that I would do something like that!" He clenched the book in his hand. "I've been put on death row, and you think I'm suppose to be afraid of someone like you!" He watched as Azami's tears disappeared from her face." I hate to be afraid of you, but lying to myself makes me even more disgusted!" He tossed the book right in front of Kouzuji's face."So why don't you just go fuck yourself! That's my rule!"

Azami was surprised by Ganta's action. _Is this kid for real?_

_Did I just do what I think I did? _Ganta covered his face as Kouzuji swung his fist in his direction.

"Kouzuji!" Everyone turned around to see Makina in the doorway. She was ready to unsheathe her sword."I suggest you stop or you'll have to make it through this race in a bucket."

"You got lucky kid." Kouzuji turned around and walked out of the locker room. _I'll kill him in the race. _

"All of you have ten minutes until the race begins!" Makina watched as all the contestants made their way outside.

_Now, I'll just ease my way back to my cell. _Ganta turned around slowly to grab the book. _Huh? _Something caught his eye, but unfortunately the wind blew it to the front cover before he could get a good look at the page.

The runners were waiting for the signal at the starting line.

"So Ganta decided to run in today's Dog Race. This will make for an interesting show." Tamaki watched as the boy read through the handbook."I think I'll give the narrator a call."

"Something wrong Promoter Tamaki?"

"No, I actually called because I wanted to have the danger level increased to its max today. Oh, and be sure to have a corpse disposal team ready on standby just in case things get a little... messy."

"Is there anything else sir?"

"I almost forgot, make sure that the customers and those idiot human rights activist know that everything here is just for dramatic effect."

"Yes sir."

Tamaki sat back as he hung up the phone."You didn't really expect I'd let you go around poking holes through everything so easily now did you? My game is becoming more and more expensive as you and that red menace go shooting about. I'll have you two quickly disposed of as soon as that old man croaks." He folded his hands neatly in his lap. "So I guess you'll just have to entertain me in the meantime, Woodpecker."

"3..."

_Where is that page?_ Ganta was frantically flipping through the handbook. _Here it is!_

"...2..."

**Candy is the antidote for the collars.**

_Yeah, I know that ,but it was something else on this page. _He kept reading until he spotted the small box in the bottom left-hand corner.

"...1.."

**The vendor sells candy for 100,000 CP a piece.**

_That means I only have this one shot to save my life. _

Bang!

Everyone rushed out of their respective gates.

"And their off ladies and gentlemen!"

The audience was standing up as the prisoners approached the first obstacle.

"Now first up is the "Slice and Dice!" Will the contestants be able to avoid the bladed pendulums?

_Alright all I have to do is get ahead of this guy and I'll be in fourth._ Ganta stayed right behind the guy. _I think I can get around him. _Ganta watched as the guy was quickly chopped into pieces by the pendulums.

"Aw man, that was awesome!"

"Good thing I caught that on camera!"

"That's disgusting." A woman held her hand over her mouth.

"Oh come on babe that's the whole idea. And who cares if they get hurt? They're all just criminals anyway."

Ganta rushed to make his way back in fifth. _Gotta get to the finish line._

Kouzuji looked over to see Ganta catching up."Hey!" He turned to face his crew. "Make sure that punk gets it or else I'll knock all your fucking jaws off!"

They all quickly saluted to the raging man."Yes sir!"

"The contestants have now made it to the "Hall of Arrows!" Can they dodge the oncoming projectiles?

"He's almost there." One of Kouzuji's goons jumped off the nearby tower. "This brat is mine!"

"Ooops!" Shiro pushed Ganta out of the way.

He managed to catch himself before he stumbled off the edge. "Hey! Shiro that could have..." Ganta watched as the guy fell into the pool of water.

Ah! The guy was electrocuted to a crisp.

...been me."Ganta took a big gulp after watching what happened to the guy.

"You can't be like that, because Shiro wants to eat Anpan with Ganta." Shiro turned around to face Ganta. The smile on her face was terrifying to him. He couldn't understand how she was so happy in all this madness.

_Is she enjoying all of this?_

In the lobby, some of the prisoners were clenching their bets as they watching the race.

"Pick up the pace No. 83! You're falling behind!"

"I got money riding on you, No. 22!"

"Make it to the finish line No. 45!"

_That's a corpse recovery team._ Azami watched as the paramedics carried off some of the competitors._ I guess I'm glad I'm not in this race. _ She started to worry as the number of participants started decreasing. _I wonder if Ganta's okay? _

_This race is bloodier than usual. _Yo watched as some of the contestants were sliced, shot, and crushed.

"Hey man this the break I've been waiting for." Someone stepped beside Yo. "I'll win some cash and be able to pay you back."

"Then I wish you good luck on your bet."

All of the contestants made their way to the top of the slope.

"This is it folks. The final stage for the remaining few! The only rule is to be the last one holding the Deadman ball when the timer runs out!"

_Alright I can do this! _Ganta looked at all his competitors. _Everyone's worn out so I might have a shot at winning this._

"Start!"

_Seems pretty straightforward to me._ Ganta watched as some of the contestants fell into the deteriorating panels. _I guess I gotta be careful on choosing which panels to run on. _He managed to snatch the ball from the last member of Kouzuji's crew. "Nice pass!"

"Uh oh, there are only a handful of panels left! Which one of these competitors will take home the grand prize of 100,000 CP?"

_Just gotta avoid Kouzuji. _Ganta looked down at the row of panels.

"Come over here you fucking brat!" Kouzuji was charging right behind him like an angry bull. Once he grabbed him, Kouzuji picked Ganta up by the collar. "Your luck just ran out kid, so gimme the ball." He held his hand out to the struggling boy.

_I'm surprise I didn't even notice it before._ Ganta watched as the panels started crumbling in a pattern. _All of the panels fall at inverse positions of each other. _The panel Kouzuji was standing on started to deteriorate. Ganta landed safely back on the panel he was originally on, but unfortunately Kouzuji, as he fell, managed to kick the ball out of his hand. _No!_

Shiro caught the airborne ball."Nice Pass!"

"I ain't done yet!" Kouzuji grabbed onto the ledge of the panel Ganta was standing on. Once he picked himself up, he threw the boy onto another set of panels. "Don't worry about your girlfriend, I play real nice!"

"Shiro!" Ganta watched as Kouzuji began chasing after her.

"And it seems like number ninety-three has managed to save himself and his now on his way to claim the ball!"

_That 100,000 CP is mine. _Kouzuji started to slowly approach the albino girl. He stretched out his hand to her."Give me the ball little girl and I won't have to hurt you." He watched as she shook her head from side to side. "Can't say that I didn't give you a chance."

Ganta began panicking about what was going to happen to Shiro. _What do I do? _It seemed like nothing could be done to stop this. _Come on! What do I do? _He took a glance at the symbol on his right hand. It was the Woodpecker that Shiro had drawn when they first met.

_Now Shiro and Ganta are best friends._

He stood up and started charging down the crumbling row of columns. He saw Kouzuji standing perfectly in his line of sight. He leaned his head forward and closed his eyes. _You're right, we are best friends..._

…_...aren't we Shiro._

Ganta slammed dead center into Kouzuji's ribs. The man tumbled off the panel.

"Did everyone see that! Number seven just headbutted number ninety-three off the panel!"

_No way am I going to let this brat have it!_ Kouzuji was falling down into the pitfall of spikes. "You fucking brat!" He snatched the knife from his sleeve and threw it. Shiro tried to intervene the projectile, but Ganta pushed her over to the nearby panel. The knife grazed him on his side.

"And it looks like number seven is hurt!"

"Ganta!" Shiro kneeled down at the injured boy. She watched as he stood back up from his injury.

Ganta held onto the bloody cut on his side. "I'm alright so now let's …." The panel Shiro was standing on deteriorated before she could move over to him.

"Looks like this is the end for number forty-six!"

"Catch Ganta!" She threw the ball up to the boy, who ignored the pass and caught her.

Everyone watched as the ball went high into the sky and then fell down onto a sharp spike.

"What has number seven done! He just threw away the grand prize! The game is over!"

The audience started throwing things into the field.

"Boo!"

"You gotta be kidding me"

"Let's go to the other attractions or something."

The prisoners in the lobby were just as disappointed as the audience.

"Aw man, I was going to buy myself out of this joint!"

"I spent most of my CP on that damn race!"

Azami looked on the screen to see Ganta still alive. _Whew, he's safe._

"Looks like I'll have to pay you back some other way." The guy folded his bet in half.

Yo looked at the earring on his ear. "I think we can work something out."

Back at the stadium, Ganta was lying down on the panel as he held onto tight to her hand. The edge of the panel was opening the wound, and even more blood started rushing out. _Damn this hurts. _Feeling dizzy and weak, he quickly pulled the girl up and fell to the ground with his hand on his side.

"That was a nice pass Shiro gave!" She settled his head in her lap and watched him lie there with his eyes closed. "So why did Ganta do that?"

"I had to because if you died then..." She watched as his expression switch from pain to happy. "... we couldn't eat Anpan together."

The audience ripped up their tickets into pieces and left the the stadium in disappointment at today's Dog Race.

Yo was in the bathroom washing off his new winnings._ This maybe enough for at least 100 CP. _Yo held up the earring to the mirror. _Should have returned the money sooner. _He threw away the ear in the trash can._ I like having nicer friends anyway._

"That was good." Shiro stood up and started making her way down the hall. "Bye bye Ganta!

Ganta threw away the Anpan wrappers, and watched as she disappeared around the corner. _I wonder where she goes._

* * *

"Today was fun Ganta!"Shiro was skipping happily down a dim hallway. A few minutes later, her skipping turned into walking. _Today's game was quite boring Woodpecker. _Her once cheerful smile turned into a twisted grin. _I want our next game to be good _guys_ vs bad guys. _

"Now which one of you do I have the pleasure of speaking with?" She turned around to see Tamaki standing in front of laboratory. "Ah, so you've finally come out haven't you?" Tamaki started gesturing her to come inside. "Come along now, we have much to do."

Shiro walked inside and placed her hand on the worn-out red cloth. _Let's play some more Woodpecker. _She slid the mask on her face and wrapped the torn cape around her neck as she stepped into Mother Goose System. _And don't worry, your poison beak can't kill me._

_Now onto something else. _Tamaki walked out of the laboratory and headed for the elevator. _I know "he" will be excited about his upcoming match. _He stepped inside and punched in a code to reveal a hidden keyhole. Once he turned his key, he watched as the letters lit up from A through F. Everything went black for a moment and the elevator stopped. The doors opened up to a dimly lit hallway. _Knowing him he's probably in the training room._ He stepped inside one of the rooms to see a man practicing his jabs on a punching bag.

The man stopped and turned around to face his visitor. "What do you want?"

Tamaki took a seat on a bench and crossed his legs. " I thought maybe you should be the first one to know that your opponent will be arriving here soon."

"So Woodpecker finally made it." He focused his attention back on the punching bag. "Good, I can't wait to see how he does in battle." He sliced the bag in the middle with red scythes coming from his forearms.

"Dead Center."

* * *

Thanks for reading chapter two, and be sure to stay tuned for more chapters soon.


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